I had to make something for a potluck yesterday and decided on potato salad with a Greek theme (I'll blog the recipe on Thursday-- it turned out well!). The only problem was that I used up all my homemade mayonnaise, and we have to have some around this time of year for tomato sandwiches made with our homegrown tomatoes. So I decided to experiment with a variation on my usual vegan mayo recipe that I've been meaning to try-- using some of the new vegan egg yolk substitute, The VEGG.

I know that others have made vegan mayo with The VEGG, but those were typical mayo recipe containing mostly oil. Now, I love mayonnaise, and I like to slather it on liberally, but the oil-rich versions are too calorie and fat-laden for my style of eating. So my version contains only 1/4 cup oil, but it really tastes and behaves like mayonnaise, so I don't feel deprived.

The recipe took just a wee bit of modifying and it turned out very well. You can't really taste the egg-y flavor right up front (which is a good thing, in my opinion), but there seems to be an added richness to the mixture.

This is a revised version of the recipe that appears in several of my
cookbooks. For those who are allergic to soy, or who do not like tofu
mayonnaise or the commercial "light" mayos (most are not vegan,
anyway), here is a delicious (and inexpensive) solution! Four Hellman's fans of
my acquaintance loved this (and were surprised that they did!). It contains a small amount of oil, just
enough for good flavor and mouthfeel. It’s smooth and creamy, and a little
tangy, but not too much. The VEGG seemed to add a richness to the mixture.

**BRIGHT IDEA-- This mayonnaise, with the addition of herbs, garlic,
etc., can be used as a savory vegetable and toast topping. Note: If
you leave out the agar in the basic recipe, this makes a good base for cold
savory sauces.

1.) Place all of the Mix A ingredients into your blender
jar or food
processor bowl and set aside. NOTE: If you have no food
processor or blender, you can use a 1 qt. deep bowl or pitcher and a hand/immersion
blender.

2.) In a small saucepan or microwave-proof bowl, mix together the water and
agar from Mix B, and let sit for a few of minutes. Add the cornstarch and whisk
well. If making in the pot on the stovetop, stir constantly
over high heat until thick and translucent-- not white. Microwave option: Use the microwave-proof
bowl for the mixture, and microwave on HI 30 seconds. Whisk. Repeat this about
three times, or until thick and translucent. (The microwave works well with
cornstarch mixtures.)

Tip: If you don't cook this thoroughly, the mayo won't thicken properly.

Tip #2: Make sure to scrape the bottom of the
pot or bowl with the whisk, so that no cornstarch gets left at the bottom.

3.) Scrape the cooked Mix B into the blender or food
processor or container you are using with a hand/immersion blender (using a
spatula so that you get as much of it as you can out of the bowl or pot)
containing Mix A. Quickly add the xanthan or guar gum. Blend until the mixture is very white and frothy and
emulsified (you can't see any oil globules).(Tip: This mayo doesn’t get
thick as you blend it, like regular mayonnaise or soy mayonnaise made with lots
of oil, so don’t blend it and blend it, thinking it will thicken as it
blends— it won’t!! It will thicken in a few hours in the refrigerator.)

4.) Pour into a clean pint jar, cover and refrigerate for
several hours, until it is set. It should be firm enough to stand a
knife up in.

Keep refrigerated. Will keep for about 2 weeks.

Cooking Tip

Do you prefer Miracle Whip to mayonnaise? Try this:

Use 1 teaspoon mustard powder, and add 1 tablespoon lemon
juice and 1 tablespoon organic sugar or agave nectar to the recipe (sugar
levels in this type of recipe vary, so start with this and then let your taste
dictate).

Nutrition facts were (using Living Cookbooksoftware) calculated using
my homemade soymilk and 1/4 cup olive oil. I calculated it using
various kinds of nondairy milk and the nutrition facts are in this range no
matter what you use (except for regular coconut milk, which has more fat in
it). 21 calories a tablespoon is pretty darn good, considering
regular mayonnaise (even vegan) contains about 100 calories per tablespoon!

If you use less oil, of course fat and calorie levels
will be less, but I think you loose the creamy mouthfeel and it doesn't look
right to me, but I've given you the Nutrition facts for that version below
these, if you insist!

7 comments:

You need about 1 tablespoon agar flakes, but I would grind them as fine as possible in a clean, dry coffee/spice mill, and then soak in the water for at least 10 minutes before cooking, so that it cook more easily. I really recommend using agar powder-- it's so much easier to use. Many people mistakenly think it's more expensive than flakes, but, ounce per ounce, powder can be cheaper than the flakes! For instance, 4 oz. of Barry Farms agar powder is $16.58 (and it will last you for ages because you use 6 times LESS than the flakes). If you go to this page http://tinyurl.com/awmlcceand compare this to the price of the flakes, you will see that flakes cost upwards of $6 per ounce.

I sure hope you are right because I gave up mayo rather than eat vegan mayo and I've tried many times making my own and none come up to Hellmann's even though the creators said it did. My friends all my life have been trying to fool me with different brands and NONE have succeeded. I hope yours will be the trick because Jersey tomatoes will be out and I can't live any longer with out a BLT (vegan of course).

While I was reading this recipe it came up to my mind an oil emulsion which could increase the mouthfeel.

For the oil emulsion combine (I use a hand blender with the wire whisk attachment at the lowest speed) pea or soy protein isolate, oil and water in a ratio 1:4:5. I also add a bit of lecithin as it gives me more consistent results.

For 150g (needed for your recipe - I usually make more of it and freeze the rest in 50g portions) of emulsion dissolve 2gr of lecithin granules in 50g of water. Mix in 10gr of protein powder until a glossy paste is obtained. Pour in slowly 40gr oil and mix until thick and creamy. If you spoon it, the mixture should stick at it.

From your recipe I left out milk and oil. Basically I mixed the oil emulsion above, with mix B (made with 1 cup of water instead of 10 Tbsp), vinegar, kala namak and mustard.

well, that's a whole different recipe, Frederico. And it uses some ingredients that many people don't have. I wanted to keep this simple and easy and cheap and lowfat, as well as tasting good. So, I'm satisfied with my method. Thanks for your thoughts.

Anonymous, see my version using no extracted oil here: http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.ca/2013/07/my-low-fat-vegan-mayo-with-no-extracted.html It contains 1/4 cup raw cashews instead of oil and turns out beautifully!

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